Culver in Iowa City For Jumpstart Bill Signing

According to the a press release from the governor's office via RIO (Rebuiding Iowa Office) Governor Chet Culver signed legislation today in iowa City to help homeowners affected by last year’s flood. Senate File 289 reduces the amount of time, from 10 years to 5 years, state-funded Jumpstart Iowa recipients must stay in their homes before their entire Jumpstart loan is forgiven.

“Last fall, when so many Iowans were struggling to recover from the floods and storms of 2008, state government took steps to help rebuild our state by creating the Jumpstart Iowa program, which included millions of dollars to help homeowners get back on their feet,” said Governor Culver. “With my signature, we are easing the administrative process on families and homeowners – to make this program more user-friendly, and to reduce the burdens loan recipients face. This is one of many steps we’ve collectively taken to rebuild Iowa and to help our state come out of the disaster of 2008 safer, stronger, and better.

In September, Governor Culver created the Jumpstart Program to help home and business owners affected by last year’s flooding and severe weather. One of the first major steps the State took to help homeowners and small businesses hurt by last year’s floods was to create the Jumpstart Business and Housing Initiative. Among Iowa’s small businesses, a total of 1,064 have applied for the program. 856 have been approved for Jumpstart assistance, and 677 have already received a check.

The second component – the Jumpstart Housing Program – provided homeowners 10 year forgivable loans for repairing their damaged structure or purchasing a new house; to date, a total of 2,471 homeowners have been approved for help. Jumpstart has obligated a total of $42.7 million, with an average award of $17,263 to Iowa homeowners. Under SF 289, Governor Culver and the legislature are helping homeowners by reducing the terms of these forgivable loans to 5 years. The legislation was passed unanimously by the House and Senate